Pop Bytes

I love writing about pop culture, but sometimes I just have random thoughts that I want to put out there about certain things that don't warrant an entire post. That's where "Pop Bytes" comes in. I'll do this from time to time just to get some commentary out there, and I encourage you to chime in!

VH1 This channel has been rocking my socks off lately. It started with the return of Pop Up Video. I absolutely love this show, and have enjoyed reminiscing, as well as seeing current videos since no one seems to show them anymore. They also recently aired 100 Greatest Songs of the 00s which made me want to create a giant playlist and listen to it over and over (hello Spotify!). VH1 also has Tough Love Miami and The TO Show, which are two of my guilty pleasures. And if you get up early enough, they actually show MUSIC VIDEOS in the morning, imagine that!

Oprah's Lifeclass I've never really liked Oprah, but I tuned in to the first episode out of curiosity and boredom. I was hoping that she was using old episodes to reminisce and maybe catch up with old guests, which could be interesting (because of the guests, not her). Instead, it is Oprah using old episodes to "teach life lessons." I found it hilarious that the first episode was about ego! If she was really taking that advice, she wouldn't have this show. Oprah is no more qualified to guide someone through life than any other broadcaster. I found out that she would have been a social worker or teacher if she wasn't doing this. If she had actually studied to be either of those, maybe I would take her a bit more seriously.

Fox on Demand I'm glad that Fox has finally jumped on the bandwagon, so I can watch shows I've missed. However, they seem to be missing the point of "on demand." They have their shows available in their entirety, including commercials, without allowing fast forward. In contrast, other networks feature commercials, but they only have one or two per break, so it doesn't require as much time. Also, I've been using it to watch The X Factor, and they only have the episodes up for a couple of days before they take it off, which is kind of pointless. Hopefully they'll get it together for the second half of the season.

Blue Valentine I finally watched this movie. It had amazing reviews, great acting, and Ryan Gosling. Although I agreed with the acting, this movie was soooo depressing. Don't watch it if you're already in a bad mood! And Ryan looks totally grungy and trashy, yuck.

The Sing Off I said I wouldn't pick a favorite until the top ten, so I'm a little late, as they're now down to the top eight. Consistently, I have liked AfroBlue's performances. They have great song choices, and they always put their own spin to it to make it slightly different. I've also enjoyed all three male college groups, and can't really pick a favorite among them right now. I'm ready for The Collective to go, and anxious for Pentatonix going forward, as they finally impressed me this week!

Entertainment Weekly's Reunions Issue I mentioned this a few weeks ago talking about Home Improvement. That article was great, and I also enjoyed the reunion of Growing Pains. I wish they could have done a few more!

Alright, that's my two cents for now. What tv, music or movies has you going right now?

Get Spotifyed!

I know that some of you have already discovered the joys of Spotify, but for those who haven't yet, I just wanted to fill you in. For a simple description, I guess it's kind of a mixture of iTunes and Pandora. You download the program from the internet at Spotify.com. There is a free version and a paid version. I'm not sure of all the differences between the two, except that there are no advertisements on the paid version. (If anyone else can enlighten, feel free!)

Anyway, it's basically like having the biggest iTunes account in the world! You can listen to whatever you want, whenever you want, and make playlists or star songs so that you don't have to constantly search for the same song to listen to. For me, it's been awesome because I can listen to entire albums. Since we are on such a budget, Jamie and I have not been able to buy music like we've done in the past. Spotify allows me to listen to the CDs that I would normally have wanted to buy. It also helps you weed out CDs you DON'T want to buy, which is another good way to save money! Unlike iTunes, the songs aren't loaded onto your computer, so it doesn't take up a lot of memory.

So far I'm really impressed with the variety of music they have. They even have a sizeable amount of Christian music, which I was surprised by. The only artist I haven't been able to find so far is Pink, which I thought was random, but I'm sure there's a reason for it. Here are some of the songs I'm currently playing on repeat:

"Not Over You" Gavin Degraw
"Innocent" Taylor Swift
"Cosmic Love" Florence and the Machine
"Til the World Ends" Britney Spears
"Monster" Paramore
"Skyscraper" Demi Lovato
"Moves Like Jagger" Maroon 5/Christina Aguilera
"Loud Music" Michelle Branch
"Something to Believe In" Parachute
"What You Want" Evanescence
"I am Woman" Jordin Sparks
"Pumped Up Kicks" Foster the People
"Cooler Than Me" Mike Posner
"OMG" Usher
"Mr. Know It All" Kelly Clarkson

How about you? Have you discovered Spotify yet? What are you listening to?